Coal miners sell more in first half, but profits remain stagnant | The Jakarta Post | Major coal producers reported a significant increase in sales during the first half of the year but most failed to turn favorable profits as coal market prices plunged even deeper. Moreover, it said, a more competitive market was on the horizon as Australian producers would likely discount its coal as the depreciation of its dollar against the US dollar would still improved their performance. "The weakening of the Australian dollar seems to have played a role in lowering the production costs in Australian dollar terms and allowing Australian producers to lower prices to make their coal more competitive in the market," Adaro head of investor relations Cameron Tough said. State owned coal miner PT Bukit Asam sold 20 percent more coal in the first half of the year compared to the same period last year and listed coal miner PT Bumi Resources estimated that its sales volume rose 20.2 percent year-on-year in the first six months. Other major miners also reported two-digit growth in sales volume, however, they all experienced the drop — of around 20 percent — in the selling price, which caused had a negative effect on their respective net profits.